Maple Cayenne Toasted Walnuts

These maple cayenne toasted walnuts are the spicy-sweet, healthy salad topper of your dreams! They're also great for snacking, jazzing up your baked goods with an unexpected spice, and making veggie side dishes more interesting with crunchy topping. All you need are four ingredients and 20 minutes!

this recipe

As someone who has dedicated her career to making salads, veggies, and other healthy foods taste delicious, I firmly believe that toppings can be life-changing when it comes to flavor and texture. These maple cayenne toasted walnuts do just that with the perfect amount of spicy-sweet and toasty-crunchy, and done in less than 20 minutes (most of the work being done by the oven). They're perfect for snacks, salads, grain bowls, soup toppers, and crumbling on complementary spiced dishes like these Moroccan-spiced roasted carrots or even roasting right into these maple walnut roasted Brussels sprouts.

Fun fact, these toasted walnuts are even great for desserts (I'm serious!). The spiciness of cayenne makes your tastebuds more receptive to sweet tastes, amplifying your dessert-tasting experience. So no, you would not be crazy to throw some of these maple cayenne toasted walnuts into a healthy carrot cake. Whether you decide to spice up your Thai butternut squash soup or liven up a salad, you get to choose your own adventure here!

Key Ingredients

• Raw walnuts - I like to use walnut halves for size , but pieces could work too (note that they might cook more quickly, so pay close attention to avoid burning).
• Pure maple syrup - Maples syrup adds sweetness and makes a nice sticky coating for the cayenne to get stuck in the walnut crevices. It also helps get them nice and caramelized!
• Cayenne pepper - The seasoning that adds a spicy component to these walnuts.

Substitutions & Variations

• Nuts - Swap the walnuts out for the same amount of pecans, almonds, cashews, or pepitas for different textures and flavors! My roasted rosemary mixed nuts are a great example of how different nut sizes and textures hold on to flavor (and you'll definitely want try those ones sometime too).
• Cinnamon - Add ½ teaspoon of cinnamon to the spice mix, OR replace cayenne with cinnamon altogether.
• Kid-friendly - Replace cayenne with cinnamon (see above), or try pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice instead.

Let's Make These Spiced Walnuts

Step 1: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. In a medium bowl, combine walnuts, cayenne pepper, and salt, and stir to coat the walnuts in the spices.

Step 2: Pour in the maple syrup and stir until it evenly coats all of the walnuts.

Step 3: Spread the walnuts in an even layer onto the prepared baking sheet, and bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, gently stirring once halfway through.

Step 4: Once they're done, allow them to cool on the sheet pan for a few minutes (they'll crisp up as they cool!). And then you're done - YUM! Time to snack and top all the delicious foods (highly recommend in this chicken salad with red grapes).

Hint: Since ovens vary, start to watch the walnuts closely when you approach the 12-minute mark. If they seem like they're getting overdone, take them out a little early and allow them to start cooling.

Storage

Store these cayenne and maple spiced walnuts in an airtight container (we love glass jars/containers) once they've cooled completely, for up to three months in a cool, dry place.

You can also freeze the walnuts in an airtight container (try to leave as little airspace as possible) for up to three months.

Pairings

Looking for ideas that you can top with these delicious toasted walnuts? Try one of the recipes below!

Did you make these spicy-sweet toasted walnuts? Don't forget to leave a star rating 🌟 and comment below, and tag me on Instagram and Pinterest so I can see what you made!